A leading advocate for LGBTQ rights in Florida says every anti-LGBTQ bill filed in the 2025 legislative session was defeated.
“Once again, we’ve done what many thought was impossible: not one anti-LGBTQ bill passed this [60-day] session,” said Equality Florida Executive Director Nadine Smith in a statement on Saturday. “We improved on the tremendous defeat of 21 out of 22 anti-LGBTQ bills last session for a complete sweep this session, defeating every anti-LGBTQ bill.”
Legislators announced late Friday they would return to Tallahassee later this month for an extended session scheduled to last through June 6 to complete a spending deal ahead of the July 1 start of the next fiscal year.
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Equality Florida said the following anti-LGBTQ bills did not pass during the current session:
— Pride Flag Ban (HB 75/SB 100), a bill banning government agencies, including public schools and universities, from displaying any flag that represents a “political viewpoint,” including Pride Flags.
— Don’t Say Gay or Trans at Work (HB 1495/SB 440), a bill aimed at censoring public workplace discussions of LGBTQ issues, and enabling harassment of transgender employees.
— Anti-Diversity In Local Government (HB 1571/SB 420), a bill attempting to ban cities and counties from recognizing, supporting, and protecting the LGBTQ community and other minorities
— Banning Diversity & Equity In State Agencies (HB 731/SB 1710), a bill that would defund a broad range of activities and positions under the guise of banning DEI in state agencies and would ban state contractors and grantees from using state funds for DEI.
Smith said more than 16,000 Floridians sent emails to legislators opposing the proposed bills and that “Pride at the Capitol” participants met face-to-face with more than 325 legislators.
“This win belongs to every person who stood up, spoke out, and locked arms with their neighbors to stop the attacks before they could advance,” said Smith.
